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Dec. 8, 1925. 1,564,405

H. w. cHRlsTlAN ELEGTRICLLY CONTROLLED GAS WATER HETER Filed June 150.4 1923 2f-4| n dal n l I SMQ/nto@ Patented Der. s, 1925;

UNITED STATES HERBERT W. CHRISTIAN, 0F DETBOIT,IICHIGA.N.

ELECTRICALLY-CQNTROILED GAS WATER' HEATER.

. Application led June 30, 1923. n Serial Io. 648,856.

To' all whom t may concern: i Be it known that I, HERBERT W. CHRIS- TIAN, a citizen of the United States of America, residing at Detroit, in the county of Wayne and vState of Michigan, have invented certain new and useful 'Improvements in Electrically-Controlled Gas Water Heaters, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to theaccompajnying drawings.

A simple form of gas operated water heater includes a ltank or bo1ler serving as a reservoir and communicating with the boiler is a coil of tubing enclosed in a casing supported at the side of the boiler with a gas burner in vthe bottom of the casing adaptedl to heat the coil of tubing and the water therein. Such a heating' apparatus is ordinarily located in the basement of a house or in the kitchen and if lthe apparatus is to be placed in` operation it 'is necessary that the gas be turned on and ignited. If hot water is required in a second story bath room a housewife may have lto travel yto 'thekitchen or basement to place the apparatus in operation, and in many instances a trip must be made from the kitchen to the base? ment. To still utilize the simple form of gas operated water heater outlined above and yet permit of a housewife placing the apparatus in operation from abath room, kitchen. or from any other point about a Y house, I have devisedan electrically operated controlling device which maybe easily and quickly installed without any material change or modification in an ordinary gas operated water heater.

The electrically controlled device necessarily includes' a gas valve and I utilize-a magnet to open the valve and depend upon gravity means and gas pressure to close the valve. The magnet is placed in circuit with the thermostat located on the boiler and it is by virtue of this thermostat that the controlling device is automatically operated to cause a cessation in the operation ofthe water heater after the water has reached la predetermined temperature at a desired point within the boiler, such point insuring a suiiicient quantity of hot water for a bath or other purposes.

My controlling device also includes novel means to prevent' a thermostat from arcing or chattering, so that the operation of the` controlling device will be noiseless, safe, and serviceable.

guides 24 of the frame 21 and said armaturevv My invention will be hereinafter described by aid of the drawing, wherein-y Figure 1 is a side elevation of a gas operated water heating apparatus provided with an electrical control device 1n accordance with my invention;

' Fig. 2 is an enlarged elevation of a portion of the device; u

Fig. 3 is a vertical sectional view of the electrically controlled device, showing it `supported from the side of a boiler, and

F1g.4 is a horizontal sectional view taken on thel line IV-IV of' Fig. 3.

In the drawing, the reference numeral 1 denotes a standor -support 1 havinga side extension 2 and on the stand is a tank or boiler 3 having pipe connections 4 for the circulation of water through said boiler.

On the side extension 2 is a casing 5 containing a coil of tubing 6 with the end convolutions of the tubing connected to the boil- I er 3 so that water may circulate through the tubing. I At the bottom of the casing 5 is a gas burner 7 having a gas 'inlet pipe 8,

vided with a band 11 having a socket 12.

fora three-way connecti n 13 into which may be screwed a gas supply pipe 14 and a y and; adjacent the burner 7 is the end of a.

bracket pipe 15. The upper end .of the pipe 8 may be attached to the bracket 10, below the pipe 15, and said pipes are adapted to support a valve structure or body 16 to the upper end of which. may be connected a gas -supply pipe 9 so as Mto receive -a constant su ply of gas from .the pipe 14. In the va ve body 16 is a valve seat 17 for a valve 18 controlling communication between the pipes 8 and 15.

The valve 18 has a valve rod 19 extending downwardly through the bottom of the valve body 16 and through an angularvextension 20 of the bracket 10. On-the angular extension 2O of said bracket is a magnet core or frame 21 provided with a magnetic coil 22, and on thelower end of the Avalve rod 19 is an armature 23 movable to and from the pole pieces of the magnetic core or frame The armature 23 is movable between thereof fixed to the support 26 and con nected, as at 34 to the binding posts 27 and 29. This thermostatic device is composed of a thermostatic stri capable of lexure by heat, and wound on tlie strip is a shunt coil of high resistance, "serving two purposes. First that of preventing arcing and vibrating of thethermostatic device 50 to be hereinafter considered, and second, heating the,

thermostatic strip to cause it tobe flexed and moved to yand from the contact member {i5-mounted on the lsupport 26, said contact member having a set screw 36 to limit the movement of the thermostatic device 33. Attached to the contact member 35 is a resilient contact arm 37 adapted to engage bind-4 ing post 31 and said contact arm is adapted to be raised into engagement with the binding post 31 by an insulator 38 on the upper end of a rod 39 attached to an adjustable sleeve 40 carried by the valve rod 19.` At some point remote 'from the bracket 1() there may ybe"v a switch 41 4having' leading-in wires 42 from a suitable source of electrical energy, andl said switch is connected by wires 43 and 44 to the pectively. The binding post 30 is connected by a wire 45 to the binding post 32 and said binding post by a wire' 46 to the magnetic coil 22, which in turn is connectedl by a wire 47 tothe binding post 31. Another wire 4 8 connects the binding posts 28 and31. a

Suitably mounted on the side of the boiler 3 is a casing 49 for the thermostatic device 50 under the influence of water temperatures in the boiler .3 or a chamber within thecasing 49 which communicates with the boiler 3. The casing 49 has a contact inember 51 connected by a wire 52 to the binding post 28 and said contactmember 51 isvad'- justable relative to the free end of the thermostatic device 50. This thermostatic device is connected by va wire 53 to another themostatic device 54 located v.within the casing 5 adjacent the pilot light, and said thermostatic device isconnected by a wire 55 to the binding post 27. The thermostatic de'- vice 54 may be a conventional form of electric switch having a contact member adapted t0 be flexed by heat. As long as the pilot light burns the thermostatic ldevice 54 completes a circuit for the wires and 55, but should the pilot light be extinguished the binding posts 30- and 29 rethermostatic device 54 opens the circuit and renders the entire controlling device temporarily inoperative.

Assuming that water is to be heated in the coil of tubing 6 and the boiler 3, the switch 'l 41y is turned on and the following circuit completed z-Wires 43 and 45 to the binding valve rod 19 and the insulator rod 39. Unlseating of the valve 18 allows gas to be su plied to the burner 7 and bei ignited by t e pilot light, so that water within the coil 6 will be heated.

Simultaneous with ythe opening of the gas valve the resilient arm 37 is raised into engagement with the contact post 31, thus placing the thermostatic device 33 in parallel with the thermostat 50, but since the device 33 is of high resistance it serves as a shunt coil to prevent arcing during the operation of the thermostatic device 5() vto open the circuit at the contact member 51 due to the temperture of water within the boiler 3 or the casing 49. Onaccount -of the temperature 'of the water in the boiler3 being gradually raised and the thermostatic device 50 gradually operating, there might be arcing of the thermostatic device 50if it were not for' the thermostatic device 33. Operation'of the thermostatic device 50 leaves the thermostatic device 33 in circuit and as the coil is heated the strip is flexed to open the circuit, deenergize the magnet and cause the gas to be shut off.

Assuming that apredetermined quantity 'of water has been heated and the thermostatic vdevice 50 flexed to break the circuit at the contact member 51, the magnetic coil 22 is no longer energized and-the armature 23 descends by gravity closing the gas valve 18 which cuts oli the supply of heat tothe coil oftubing 6 constituting a conventional form of gas heater. Closing of the valve 18 lowers the rod 39 and the arm 37 breaks the circuit for the thermostatic device 33.

During the heating of the water the switch 41 can be turned off at any t`ime,but should it be left onl then the thermostatic device 50 will automatically control the heating of the water. If previously heated water is permitted to cool olf in the boiler 3, the thermostatic device 50'will eventually close the circuit and again start the heater,` and such is the operation of my device as long as the switch 41 is turned on. 0f course, at night when no hot water is to be used the switch 41 will be turnedl olf, but

during the day it may be left on sothat there will be a constant supply of hot water in the boiler 3. Y

Should the pressure of gas beso low that it will not maintain a pilot light the thermostatic device v54C maintains the circuit open and consequently the valve 18 is closed. This is a safety factor that precludes the escape of gas into a compartment in which the gas heater is located.

I attach considerable importance to the fact that my electrical control device is applicable' to an ordinary gas operated water eater, and while in the drawing there is illustrated a preferred embodiment of my invention, it is to be understood that the structural elements are susceptible to such variations and modifications as fall within the scope of the appended claims. v

What I claim is y 1. The combination of a boiler, a water heater communication therewith, a gas burner for said water heater, an electrically operated gas valve adapted to supply gas for said gas burner, a switch controlled operating circuit for said electrically operated gas valve, a thermostatic switch'carried by said boiler in the operating circuit of said gas valve so that the temperature of water in said boiler may control the' turning olf ofthe gas, and a thermostatic device in said operating circuit serving as a shunt during the operation of the thermostatic switch to prevent areing,l of said switch, said thermostatic device being operative to open the circuit of said electrically operated gas valve so that said valve may close.

2. The combination claimed in claim 1, wherein said electrically operated gas valve is of the magnetic type for valve opening purposes, with a portion of the magnet designed to close the gas valve by gravity.

3. The combination claimed in claim 1, wherein said electrically operated gas valve, includes means for shunting the operating circuit through said thermostatic device.

4. The combination claimed in claim 1, wherein said electrically operated gas valve includes a magnet having an armature serving as a weight adapted to close saidvalve when said magnet is de-energized.

5. In a water heating apparatus wherein a thermostatic switch is in an electric controlling circuit of the apparatus, and a valve after the operation of said thermostatic switch.

In testimony-whereof I aflix my signature.

HERBERT w, CHRISTIAN. 

